What is a third world country? (crime rate, living, stores)
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China and Mexico are probably first-tier third world countries.
There are a lot of third world countries that are ten times worse. Not all third world countries are equally bad.
But even the better third world countries are distinctly different from even just entry-level developed countries(Italy, South Korea).
Travelers are generally more concerned with safety than everything else. China is probably the safest third world countries, followed by touristy cities in SE Asia. The low standard of living among locals doesn't bother travelers much.
China often calls itself a third world country, but according to the original definition it should be a second world country.
Since end of cold war I think the consensus have moved away from geopolitical factions is now used to reference a developing or poorer country. So where do we draw the line?
In the "five words of less" thread many people determined that China is not a third world country, and I don't get it. Sure China has first-tier mega cities like Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen, etc. but China's average annual wages are about 11k and there are hundreds of millions that lack very basic things that the poor in USA take for granted.
So what defines a third world country in 2019?
There's a similar debate about Taiwan; it has very modern cities, but have the rural areas caught up? Does its "Tiger Economy" status qualify it for 1st World starts, along with Japan? I think Japan is way ahead of Taiwan, but I'm no expert. Is Korea First World, now?
I think, to be considered First World, i.e. a developed nation, the standard of living in the rural areas needs to be at a certain level: the vast majority should have indoor plumbing of some kind, electricity, adequate heat in cold winter conditions. Paved roads nearby. Public transportation to take people to stores for basic necessities.
Just off the top of my head. I'll be interested to see what others say.
Interesting is when some of the poorer countries in Europe have lower incomes than what most consider third world countries in Asia or Latin America.
For example, average income in Serbia is lower than Peru, Thailand, Ecuador, and Colombia.
Average income in Bulgaria is lower than Brazil, Mexico, China and Malaysia.
This is a good point. What happened to the countries that used to be called "2nd World", after the USSR crashed? IMO, they're still in a neighter-here-nor-there purgatory. Or did they suddenly drop to 3rd World status? Romania, Bulgaria and Macedonia aren't First World, I don't think there's any doubt, there.
And what about Greece? If Greece is First World, by what criteria does it qualify, and why wouldn't Macedonia and Bulgaria be on a par with it?
What does per-capita average wealth matter, if the public doesn't benefit from that wealth? Look at Kazakhstan on that map; you'd think life there must be improving. But I suspect most of the wealth comes from resource extraction, and remains in the capital, under government control, while the people in the rural areas still live like they did close to 100 years ago.
Measuring by a nation's wealth is deceptive. Standard of living and wealth don't always correlate on a national level.
Interesting map. Russia looks like it's ahead of most of SE Asia, but Russians who visit SE Asia are overwhelmed by the availability of consumer goods. They come back thinking they're way behind the 3rd World.
So what is it that places Russia ahead? Is it ahead, in fact? What are the criteria? I think the criteria by which Russia ranks higher, are that education, including higher education, is available to all, and also there's nearly-universal health care. Those kinds of intangibles make a big difference. This tells us something about what criteria we should use in determining who's 3rd World and who isn't.
Actually there isn't an exact index that measures who is developed or who not, but the closest we have to that currently is the HDI.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Greysholic
In terms of HDI, it'd be all countries other than those ranked within top 35 or so.
I agree very much with your view, but with the inequality adjusted HDI index instead and the cut off around the top 40. Portugal should be the bottom of first world tier imo.
The numbers stated in US dollars made Russia looks like a third world country, especially when it's under western sanction. Those numbers don't mean much. Russia has large international influence with its political, military powers for being a former superpower.
Since end of cold war I think the consensus have moved away from geopolitical factions is now used to reference a developing or poorer country. So where do we draw the line?
In the "five words of less" thread many people determined that China is not a third world country, and I don't get it. Sure China has first-tier mega cities like Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen, etc. but China's average annual wages are about 11k and there are hundreds of millions that lack very basic things that the poor in USA take for granted.
So what defines a third world country in 2019?
A country with a GDP per capita that is 50 percent of that of the richest G7 nation.
Since that currently is the U.S., a country with 50 percent of the U.S. GDP per capita, about 35,000 USD, is first world to me.
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